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Clinical Studies Attendance Policy: Class of 2019

Overview

Please note that there is a separate attendance policy for Foundations 2 learners here.

Policy

Clinical Studies Attendance Policy:

Attendance and punctuality during all aspects of clinical clerkships are expected and considered an important part of a student's evaluation. Students, like house staff, are expected to fulfill their educational responsibilities and their patient care responsibilities; they are accorded real roles and form an integral part of the hospital team.

A student must take the following steps to request an excused absence from a clinical clerkship: first, the student should consult directly with his/her respective clerkship director. If further discussion is necessary, the student should consult with the Associate Dean for Students. Ideally this should be done well in advance to avoid disappointment if the request is not granted. Medical Student Education will keep track of a student's requests over time, and will provide feedback and advice if the requests become excessive. If a student experiences an unexpected emergency s/he must immediately notify his/her Clerkship Director and the medical student center.

Ordinarily no more than one (1) excused absence is allowed in 4 weeks of clinical clerkship; a student will not receive credit for the clerkship if s/he misses more than 1 day in 4 weeks. In some cases, in consultation with the Clerkship Director and with the UME, a plan to "make up" missed days may be devised. Unexcused absences during a clerkship can result in an automatic failure, requiring repeat of the clerkship.

During Interview Season

Students will be allowed 1 day per 2 weeks during an elective or core rotation for interviews. For core rotations, the student may not miss the first day of the rotation because attendance at orientation is required. The missed day is to be used only for interviews. The interview day needs advance notification to the course director and documentation of the interview to the course director for approval. Students who need more time off for interviews than allowed will need to drop the rotation and reschedule.

Vacation Policy

Students have eight weeks of free "block time" that can be used as vacation in the third and fourth years. These eight weeks are in addition to the regularly scheduled academic vacation between fall and winter quarters. On top of these two blocks of vacation time, students who take electives during their first and second years may substitute up to six units credit from these electives for one clinical block, resulting in a maximum of 12 weeks of vacation during the clinical years (JMP students automatically receive this extra 4 weeks of vacation).

Vacation may not be taken during the scheduled time for the Clinical Performance Exam (CPX), May or June of your fourth year.

PLEASE NOTE: The only holiday time that is automatically granted is for Thanksgiving. You are released from your clerkship at 8pm the day before Thanksgiving and must return by 8am the day after. You always have the weekend off between core clerkships; during 4th year, having the last weekend off depends on the service.